Auction Roundup Spotlights Rally Legends, Rock Star Cars, and a Stretched Porsche
A weekly curated auction list highlights standout collector vehicles, including a Group B Lancia 037 Evo II, a Maserati Mistral once owned by Rush drummer Neil Peart, and a custom Porsche 356 limousine built for a wedding.
A curated selection of standout collector vehicles has drawn attention this week, ranging from a genuine Group B rally legend to a rock star's Italian sports car and a stretched Porsche built for a family wedding. The roundup, drawn from more than 1,300 live auctions, highlights machines that combine unusual provenance with serious enthusiast appeal.
Among the most significant entries is a 1983 Lancia 037 Evolution II, a rear-wheel-drive machine that represented the fullest expression of the platform that fought for glory on the Group B rally stage. This particular car was delivered in Corsa specification and spent its racing career with Jose Bernardo Cardin, a Spanish cider magnate and gentleman driver. By 1986 it had been upgraded to Evo II specification and went on to claim victory at that year's Rally San Agustin. After sitting dormant for roughly two decades, Cardin returned the car to competition in vintage rallies before selling it to a new owner in the United States. It now wears a version of its El Gaitero Sidra livery and has been documented kicking up dirt on video.
Another highlight is a 1965 Maserati Mistral 3500 Spyder formerly owned by Neil Peart, the late drummer of Rush. Peart was known for a garage that, while modest compared with his vast drum collection, was impressive enough to warrant a coffee table book titled «Silver Surfers: Sports Cars of the Sixties». The Mistral Spyder was one of seven vehicles in his collection, sharing space with a Ghibli, a Lamborghini Miura, a Jaguar XKE, a C2 Corvette, an Aston Martin DB4, and a 289 Cobra. The car notably lacks a radio, though its engine provides ample soundtrack on its own.
Perhaps the most unconventional offering is a 1953 Porsche 356 Custom Limousine, described as possibly the rearmost rear-engine Porsche ever listed. The stretched oddity was commissioned by Porsche collector John Dixon, reportedly for his daughter's wedding. Dixon tapped Don «The Egyptian» Boeke, so called for his birthplace of Egypt, Ohio, for the build, a marked departure from Boeke's typical custom style. Boeke dismantled three or four cars, including a basketcase bent-window Pre-A coupe, to source the panels needed for the elongated body. The interior is tailored to Rolls-Royce or Mercedes standards of the era, retaining German gauges, semaphore turn indicators, and a traditional 356 parcel shelf at the rear of the cabin.
Two prototype Callaway-turbocharged machines also stand out from the Tons of Gas Collection. A 1984 Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3 with a five-speed manual is a one-off collaboration between Callaway Engineering, Bilstein, Recaro, and BBS. Though it resembles the 190E 2.5 homologation special, it began as a regular single-overhead-cam 190E and became a late-blooming sister to the factory hot rod. Alongside it is a 1987 Alfa Romeo Milano Gold Callaway Twin Turbo, which parallels the Alfa Romeo 75 Turbo Evoluzione sold in Europe. Callaway's version bypassed displacement-based tax penalties by bolting twin IHI turbochargers and air-to-air intercoolers onto the stock 2.5-liter Busso V6. The car now wears a Turbo Evoluzione-style body kit, HRE wheels, and numerous aftermarket additions.
From the same collection comes a widebody Euro 1987 Volkswagen Scirocco with a five-speed manual. The car features a body kit from the nascent Rieger Design und Tuning and, in the words of the listing, has more scoops than a Baskin-Robbins staffed by tabloid journalists. The ostentatious 1980s theme continues inside with white leather upholstery, a polished roll cage, and custom audio equipment throughout.
Other entries include a 1990 Ford C8000 former fire apparatus paired with a 1996 Damon Hornet travel trailer in matching avocado green and white. The Ford retains its rearward-facing exterior seats, with seat belts still present underneath. A 1984 Fiat 131 Racing Volumetrico Abarth also appears, one of fewer than 50 second-series late-production Racing models given the Abarth treatment, featuring a Volumex-supercharged 1,995cc twin-cam four, larger front brakes, an anti-roll bar, and sporty suspension. The list is rounded out by a 1953 Alfa Romeo 1900C Sprint Coupe by Touring with a five-speed manual, a coachbuilt example of the marque's craftsmanship.
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